


Shards Of Moonlight

by Candamira



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Community: hp_drizzle, Great Lake, HP: EWE, Heartbreaking, Hogwarts Eighth Year, Luminous Plankton, M/M, Moonlight, Swimming, Swimming Boys, Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-08
Updated: 2016-10-08
Packaged: 2018-04-25 10:23:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 724
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4956664
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Candamira/pseuds/Candamira
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Even if I had known that shards of moonlight leave invisible scars which hurt for a lifetime, I wouldn't have forgone the one night I had with Harry.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Shards Of Moonlight

**Author's Note:**

  * For [emansil](https://archiveofourown.org/users/emansil/gifts).



> Happy birthday, emansil!  
> This one is for you. It might break your heart a bit. ♥
> 
> I'm flattered that the amazing Iwao loved my idea enough to not only beta this ficlet, but to put so much time into it! And I also want to thank Whatwouldmrsweasleydo and Nia_Kantorka for their kind advice and feedback.
> 
> Shards Of Moonlight was written for emansil's birthday and was originally posted as a bonus ficlet at hp_drizzle on Livejournal.
> 
> Disclaimer: Harry Potter characters are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.

One evening near the end of our eighth year at Hogwarts Harry sat down beside me after dinner in the Great Hall. The war had stolen what had been left of our childhood; we had grown out of our enmity. But without it defining our relationship, we were lost around each other. After all we had been through it was hard to find words which wouldn't sound mundane or overly dramatic.

The team that had been assigned the task of repairing the magical ceiling had put the last spell in place the week before, and the sky spread high and wide over our heads again. It was one of those early days of summer that just wouldn't yield to the night, a velvety blue twilight that lingered and resisted to fade.

Harry had always been one for action, rather than for sitting around, so I wasn't surprised when he got up and jerked his head at the entrance in an inviting gesture. I followed him out of the castle and we walked down to the bank of the Great Lake. With each step, it became less possible to ever break the silence.

At the lakeside we sat down, for some reason careful not to touch. But we were so close that, had we turned our heads, our lips would have met. Heat radiated from his body, bringing with it the scent of broomstick-polish and leather. I closed my eyes and relaxed into the sounds of the night, my breathing falling into rhythm with his. The croaking of frogs and the soft ripple of waves took the edge off the silence between us. When I opened my eyes again, nightfall had taken away the blue tinge of the air and the lake was of a green so dark it was nearly black.

It was one of these surreal nights, when luminous plankton rose to the surface. The wind stilled and the lake lay smooth as a mirror. A parallel moon had sunk to the bottom, and the reflection of the milky way spanned over the water; a star-speckled path tempting us to explore it. We exchanged a glance, and Harry raised his eyebrows in an unspoken question, already pulling off his t-shirt. Of course I couldn't resist; I undressed, and was the first to run into the water, shattering its surface into a million shards of moonlight.

He emerged beside me, his waterlogged hair clinging to his head. His green eyes, framed by spiky lashes, gleamed with mischief and his lips parted in a slow smile as he reached out to push me under water. My laughter scared away the silence, and when I lunged at him to return the favour, we were just two boys having fun. But the easiness lasted only for one precious moment: As soon as my fingers glided over his warm skin, something new arose between us.

I chased him into deeper water, taking any chance to brush his skin. Our bodies left shining trails in the dark water, silver twins of comets' tails, and sparks sprayed with each of our moves and splashes.

Out of breath we eventually called a truce and drifted on our backs for a while, watching the night sky. Then movement in the centre of the lake announced the giant squid rising to the surface. Turning around and around in lazy circles, it conjured an underwater galaxy of shimmering stars, and we floated between the universes above and beneath until the horizon turned grey in the east.

The stars faded into the pale light of dawn, and getting aware of our bodies again, we shivered in the cool water. Yet, we took our time swimming back to the shore and lingered in the shallow water. I didn't want to get out, I feared that getting dressed would also mean slipping back into awkwardness and inhibitions.

On our way back to the castle, we kept a respectful distance. My skin ached with longing for his touch, but I kept my hands to myself and bit my lip when he only nodded in a gesture of goodbye.

__________________

I often return to the lakeside in early summer, when the twilight lingers and the lake is green and dark. Standing there, listening to the frogs and the waves, I remember us chasing each other across the underwater sky.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Comments and kudos are ♥.


End file.
